Teuthem
Teuthem is part of the Amedere Orbere system in Hex #0303. History The Scream (2665) The few records that survived the Scream point to an as yet unexplained incident that resulted in the mass release of fungal spores into the planet’s atmosphere, blocking ninety-nine percent of all sunlight from reaching the planet’s surface. Due to the chemicals released during this process the outer atmosphere has a shimmering, silvery surface, as if it was coated in mercury. After this drastic rearranging of the planet’s ecosystem, there was a noticeable increase in spontaneous torching among Teuthem’s psychics. At first, this was believed to be a direct consequence of the Scream itself, permanently altering the nature of psionics. This spawned the deep-rooted fear of psionics that remains on the planet to this day. It was not until much later that medical examiners discovered abnormal amounts of a particular spore within the psychic’s body that they properly understood what was going on. (See Supra-Cordyceps under Flora and Fauna.) 28th Century Rediscovery (2789) Like most of the systems in the sector, the Amedere Orbere system and Teuthem in particular were discovered by House Vela in the years following the Scream. Their initial notes on the discovery contain a reference to the world of quicksilver. It wasn’t for almost a year post its discovery before it was realized that a city inhabited by a human population existed beneath the silvered clouds. The Free Mining Experiment (2789 - 2831) For the first decades following the rediscovery of Teuthem there was a “gold rush” as many Imperial citizens moved to the planet in the hope of mining the radioactive materials that were found to be in abundant supply within the upper layers of Teuthem’s crust. This resulted in a rather loose alliance of mining concerns taking control of large portions of the planet’s surface. This corporate alliance eventually grew to encompass the whole planet, leading to them taking full control of the government. Initially this was through proxies who were voted in by their employees, but eventually even that charade was thrown aside for the ease of a fully corporate board making the decisions directly. This lasted until 2809 when each of the entities were bought out by the then new A.C.R.E Corporation. Under the new management the rate of serf immigration skyrocketed in an attempt by A.C.R.E. to make a quick return on their investment. This collapsed after more than 20 years when it was noticed by one of the financiers in the A.C.R.E. corporation that the numbers of serfs being shipped in to mine Teuthem were being depleted at a far higher rate than any of their other similar investments. An investigation discovered the nature of the spores of Supra-Cordyceps, and their effects on MES sufferers and the natural predators of the planet. 29th Century Refounding of Shaelthum (2831) After the collapse of Free Mining Experiment and the realisation of the true dangers of the Supra-Cordyceps and the predators, the remains of the city that lasted through the Scream were used as a base for the reconstruction of Shaelthum. The Shield of Light (2831 - Present) The remains of the security personnel that worked for the variety of mining concerns that had run Teuthem until 2831 took it upon themselves to defend the slowly rebuilding city from the encroaching fungi and animals. They formed the Shield of Light which eventually came to control the city. Psychic Safety Institute Established (2832 - Present) Shortly after the founding of Shaelthum, the Psychic Safety Institute was introduced as a governing body that dealt with MES-related issues. All newborns were to be tested for MES and, if found positive, removed for public safety. Present citizens found with MES were either forced to emigrate, re-assigned offworld, or sent outside the city. Nobles, and their serfs, were granted exception from PSI jurisdiction, but not from public opinion. 30th Century PRISM Established (2998) In late 2998 PRISM installed a news outlet on the planet, providing interstellar information, local information services, and financing, using this clout to influence the city’s government. After significant time on the planet, they eventually gained enough support to have influence over the Shield of Light. With the installation of their political machine, PRISM passed further laws giving them sweeping control over many facets of Shaelthum; surveillance, broadcasting, and trade agreements. The Shield of Light was also pushed in the direction of a stronger police state. 31st Century The Lighthouse is Built (3023-35) After gaining significant influence, PRISM used the government building that was never completed as the base for the Lighthouse, a square, bright white tower at the exact centre of Shaelthum. The windows on all four sides illuminate large swaths of the town in low light, and acts as a beacon for easy reference to non-natives. Its 50 stories tower far over the rest of the surrounding architecture and serves as logistics for the Shield of Light, PRISM, and offworld communications. Pirate Hunting (3026-3194) Numerous bands of pirates began springing up in Amedere Orbere, either within Shaelthum, offworld, or some attempting to setup remote bases beyond the city. These groups were largely disorganized and poorly funded, this resulted in many of their bases being destroyed. Unfortunately for the Shield of Light, many of these destroyed based were taken over by new pirate groups soon after they were cleared out. The continuous flow of pirate groups from base to base as they were attacked, “like whack-a-mole”, meant that despite their individually minor impact on the planet’s exports and income as a group they were one of the worst effects on the Teuthian economy in its history. 32nd Century The Outbreak (3151) One of the many minor pirate factions based in the asteroid fields around Teuthem was successfully rounded up and brought to Shaelthum for imprisonment. A few were unknowingly infected with the dangerous, psychically-active fungus Supra-Cordyceps. This led to an overnight outbreak in the vicinity of the prison, a quarantine, and ~10,000 casualties. Space services were shut down for a month, as decontamination procedures cleaned up that district of the city. The Deathless Contracted (3152) Following the wake of the Outbreak, as well as general increase in pirate factions, PRISM sought external services to ensure public safety was not threatened again. A joint contract between PRISM and the Shield of Light hired The Deathless’ services, bringing a contingent of mechs planetside. The mechs were used for ‘wildlife population control’ of predators and dangerous fungal growth in the region surrounding Shaelthum. Deathless naval officers and military personnel were also contracted to improve the native policing force. Vagrant Arrives (3195) Sector-wide piracy goes up as “House” Vagrant grow in notoriety. Local pirate forces start banding together under the Vagrant name and causing more issues to local resources. Naval vessels have higher difficulties properly protecting the mining asteroid belt, ultimately forced to pull back coverage to orbiting strategic facilities and Shaelthum. PRISM and local government notify House Crux, but resources are sparse with the ongoing Synthetic Crisis. Pirate Shootout in Shaelthum (3196) Shield of Light and Vagrant members have a violent shootout near the edge of city, briefly exposing part of the walled barrier as they fled. Multiple officers and pirates are injured, and multiple deaths between both sides. Public unrest increases. Shield of Light Passes New “Safety” Measures (3197-3199) Increased tensions between Vagrant vessels and planetside crews lead to the passage of new protection laws. ‘Neutral territory’ is established with The Last Light, a bar co-owned and staffed by Vagrant and PRISM-backed Echians (Echo citizens). The Shield of Light is disbanded into smaller security agencies; spacecraft is limited to the Shaelthum region and SS Crater-1. Law enforcement gains “new membership” for solving citizen disputes. PRISM resumes planetary mining prospecting (3198-Present) Burdened with ore shortfalls, PRISM begins using The Deathless contract prolifically to clear out regions of the jungle for mineral analysis. After a handful of failed trials, the first successful prospects take place one year later. Several mining pockets are located that were not discovered during the Free Mining Experiment. PRISM acquires another contract for The Deathless to quietly transport the additional ores offworld around the pirate fleets. Gathering the Vagrant Banners (3199) PRISM intelligence verifies that House Vagrant has gathered in alarmingly large amounts within the system with the arrival of several prominent leaders. Flora and Fauna Due to the lack of daylight on the planet, the majority of traditional flora on Teuthem has given way to radiotrophic fungi, feeding off of unusual amounts of gamma radiation from within the planet’s surface. By some twist of nature, the planet has produced several predatory creatures that are drawn toward MES, going out of their way to hunt down psychics. This has lead to psychics of all kinds being shunned and feared on Teuthem. The Supra-Cordyceps However, the greatest plague to strike Teuthem is not the psychic predators, but rather what many of their number carry with them. One of the many variants of fungi, formally called Supra-Cordyceps but known to the locals as “dust” or “darkdust”, is capable of infest the bodies and minds of anyone unfortunate enough to wander the wilds. The infection eventually seizes motor control from its host as well as the central nervous system. Studies of past victims report nonsensical thoughts forming in the victim’s mind with no consistent patterns. The host will eventually die if untreated, releasing the building spores over time. The Supra-Cordyceps spreads slower if ingested, which allows it to travel long distances with the unwilling assistance of Teuthem’s many predators. The latter’s tendencies toward psychics has caused the fungi to develop more violent reactions in MES sufferers, prompting involuntary torching and sudden death via burnout. The psychic flare that is thrown up as a result has been known to attract the attention of the predators previously mentioned. The Supra-Cordycepts is extremely photosensitive in both its mature form and as spores, on contact with light it is known to ignite violently. This has led to the city of Shaelthum maintaining a consistently lit perimeter to limit infectious opportunities. The fungus is a major part of the ecosystem of Teuthem, being a food source for some of the hardier fungivorous creatures it provides part of the base of the food chain. Many of the apex predators of Teuthem are naturally immune to telepathic effects due to evolving alongside this fungus. As a result many of these predators are host to large colonies of Supra-Cordyceps. The large number of psycho-reactive materials in the diets of these creatures draws them towards hunting prey with psychic potential. Some of the more dangerous species have even developed a degree of psychic sensitivity that allows them to track those even passively using psychic abilities. Settlements Shaelthum Upwards of 90% of Teuthem’s population is packed within the walls of the city of Shaelthum, where potent defenses against the dangers of both the Supra-Cordyceps and the psychically reactive creatures it attracts have been erected. Shaelthum has been under the influence of PRISM for nearly three-hundred years, being home to a bright, multicolored tower known as the Lighthouse. Though the sensible person remains within the lighted confines of Shaelthum, the enterprising soul might resort to night-skimming in order to turn a profit. Armed with a grav-barge and a high powered lantern, night skimmers sift through the swampland pools of Teuthem for edible fungus to sell at market. An untrained night skimmer will often die on his first haul; an incautious skimmer will accidentally bring Supra Cordyceps back with him - a silent death among his wares. Population: 547,714 Solas Solais The only other permanent human presence on the face of Teuthem. Lacking the power required to permanently light up the area around them, the denizens of Solais instead use salvaged TL3 flares, fired from old ballistic artillery units, to cleanse the wildlife for miles around their home. Relations between Shaelthum and Solas Solais are, at the best of times, strained. This is primarily due to the Solais policy of indiscriminately bombing any organism within 10 miles of their settlement - be it man or monster. '''Population: '''Approximately 48,000 Night World The world is plunged into eternal darkness. The only life on this planet derives its energy from other sources, such as geothermal heat, extremely volatile chemical reactions in the planet's soil, or light in a non-visible spectrum. Most flora and fauna is voraciously eager to consume other life. Enemies: * Monstrous thing from the night * Offworlder finding the obscurity of the world convenient for dark purposes * Mad scientist experimenting with local life Friends: * Curious offworlder researcher * Hard-pressed colony leader * High priest of a sect that finds religious significance in the night Complications: * Daylight comes as a cataclysmic event at very long intervals * Light causes very dangerous reactions to native life or chemicals here * The locals have been gengineered to exist without light Things: * Rare chemicals created in the darkness * Light source usable on this world * Smuggler cache hidden here in ages past Places: * Formlessly pitch-black wilderness * Sea without a sun * Location defined by sounds or smells Psionics Fear The locals are terrified of psychics. Perhaps their history is studded with feral psychics who went on murderous rampages, or perhaps they simply nurse an unreasoning terror of those “mutant freaks”. Psychics demonstrate their powers at risk of their lives. Enemies: * Mental purity investigator * Suspicious zealot * Witch-finder Friends: * Hidden psychic * Offwolder psychic trapped here * Offworld educator Complications: * Psychic potential is much more common here * Some tech is mistaken as psitech * Natives believe certain rituals and customs can protect them from psychic powers Things: * Hidden psitech cache * Possessions of convicted psychics * Reward for turning in a psychic Places: * Inquisitorial chamber * Lynching site * Museum of psychic atrocities Research Base Waspam 9 '''Occupation: '''Experiments that have gotten loose '''Situation: '''Held hostage by outsiders Category:Planets